• New York Post, Wednesday, June 13, 2007 11 AM

Even with the year off to a slow start, things could get worse as ad spending in 2007 could be the weakest since the recession of 2001. TNS Media Intelligence predicts that U.S. ad expenditures will be up only 1.7% to $152.3 billion this year, down from a previous view of a 2.6% rise. "Take two aspirin and wait for 2008," says Jon Swallen, senior vice president and director of research at TNS. He and other prognosticators had already seen a drop in growth compared to 2006 with its heavy Olympics and election spending.

But TNS still took down its forecast after spending in the first quarter fell short of expectations. "Spending through the first three months contracted at an even faster rate than we expected," Swallen says. "I'm coming up short on even my most pessimistic forecasts."

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